With New York Knicks team president Phil Jackson dominating headlines recently, the topic of use of medicinal marijuana in the NBA came to surface after Jackson brought up the possibility of acceptance of the substance by the league in a near future.
In a panel hosted by Michelle Beadle, former players Jalen Rose, Tracy McGrady, and Chauncey Billups traded stories and opinions about the benefit of having marijuana as an acceptable drug for medicinal purposes.
Rose shared the story of former Duke standout Jay Williams who had to take plenty of prescription drugs after an infamous motorcycle accident that derailed his career — saying he became addicted and it took a long time for him to shake the addiction off, by which time he was in no condition to make a return to the league.
The biggest gem, perhaps, came from Billups, who was open to the use of the substance for medicinal and recreational purposes, saying he'd see a change in players when they smoked, and not necessarily a bad one.
“I've honestly played with players — I'm not gonna name any names, of course I'm not, it's not what I'm here to do,” said Billups. “But… I wanted them to actually smoke, they played better like that.”
“Big time anxiety and other things like that that can be affected, it brought them down a little bit, helped them out, helped them focus a little bit on the game plan. I needed them to do that. I'd prefer them to do sometimes than drink.”
While the league would have to put some level of limits and regulations, the NBA has been known to be one of the most progressive leagues in professional sports — so it wouldn't come as a surprise to see them take a lead on the matter.
Though the conversation has already gotten started.
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